1 plus 1 plus 1
by Manny PenPen
Summary: What if Nanako had been the protagonist of Persona 4, with Souji as her adorable little cousin? An AU. Main fic is complete; series of microfics expanding the original story is still in-progress. Spoilers for the True Ending.
1. 1 plus 1 plus 1

**1 + 1 + 1**

(and counting)

"You'll be fine," her father had said. He'd kissed her on the head too, and given her a lopsided smile. "Ryoutarou's a little grumpy, but his wife and son are the friendliest people you'll ever meet."

"_Dad_." She pouted. "I'm almost seventeen years old now. Even if they don't like me, I'll be fine."

And yet, when Seta Nanako first stepped off the train platform at Yasoinaba Station, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of nervousness. Doujima looked just as grumpy as she'd expected, but his son was tiny and terribly empty-looking, as if he'd just up and disappear if he stopped clinging to his father's hand. And it was just the two of them, standing there in the first faint droplets of an oncoming April shower. "Um, hello," she said, smiling, ready to do anything to break the tension. "Is Aunt Naomi waiting in the car…?"

Doujima winced visibly, then tried to cover it up with a tired smile. "My sister didn't tell you, did she." The little boy clung tighter to his hand. "She passed away."

_Smooth_, thought Nanako, wondering if it might be smarter to bolt back into the station and throw herself on the tracks. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I-I'll just put my things in the car."

The ride back was no better; all silence and awkwardness, when Nanako had been looking forward to having a real conversation with her family-to-be. Halfway through, Souji leaned up between the two front seats with a distressed expression on his face. "You have to go?" said Doujima, looking irritated. "Can't it wait until we get back?"

Souji shook his head.

Grumbling, his father pulled into a nearby gas station. "Go on then," he said. "Do I hafta come with you?"

Another headshake from Souji. Nanako caught a flash of empty gray eyes before the boy was gone, scampering straight past the gas attendant without so much as a word. Doujima got out as well, and Nanako followed, a little hesitant. "D'you have to go too?" asked her uncle, pulling out a cigarette.

Nanako lowered her eyes. "No," she said. "I just didn't want to sit in the car alone." A pause. She really didn't want to ask the wrong question again, not at this point. And yet … "That's Souji, right?"

Doujima puffed on his cigarette. "Yeah." Seeing her discomfort, he gave her a weary smile. "It's not just you. He doesn't talk to anyone." Exhale. "Ever since..."

She looked up at him. "Uncle Doujima?"

But her uncle had already turned away, towards a nearby gas attendant. "Fill 'er up." Then, back to Nanako: "I'll be back in a minute."

As soon as he was out of earshot, the gas attendant smiled sympathetically. "New to this place?" he said. Or was it a she?

"Yeah," said Nanako. Her long brown hair was quickly becoming soaked in the rain. She'd have to pull down her pigtails and redo them once they got back. "I guess it's okay, so far."

"Well, if you ever need a part-time job, I don't think we'd mind having a cute girl around," said the attendant, winking. _Boys_, thought Nanako, as she tried to feel flattered rather than creeped out. "Welcome to Inaba," he said, offering his hand.

She jumped then, startled by the spark of energy that passed between them. But it wasn't until much later that she remembered the event, and realized.

*

For the fourth time that week, Nanako returned to a nearly-empty house. She couldn't complain _too_ much — school had been a whirlwind of activity, including her creation of what Chie had quickly dubbed the Power Trio. ("Yousuke can go break DVDs with someone _else_ for a while," she'd huffed, though that hadn't stopped the guy from tagging along anyway.) Not to mention the Midnight Channel, and Saki-senpai …

"Uncle's _still_ not back yet?" she said to nobody in particular, her face falling. Her own parents had been incredibly busy; she'd been looking forward to actually having someone around the house. It just wasn't _fair._

Something rustled in the living room, and shortly, a gray-haired head popped up from behind the table. Souji's pleased expression quickly faded into disappointment, however, once he saw that she wasn't Doujima. He settled back onto the floor with a heavy thump.

"Oh … sorry," she said, feeling a pang of guilt. After ditching her shoes and necktie, she came over and sat down next to him. "You were waiting for him, weren't you," she said, propping her feet up against a pillow. "I know what that feels like."

Her cousin thunked his head against the table. He'd set out supermarket dinners for three people, but now one of the places was likely to go to waste. Again.

"Well, if he's not going to eat _his_ dinner," she said, sighing heavily, "we should do something fun with it."

Souji slowly lifted his head, curious.

"Nothing horrible," she said, giggling a little. "I was just thinking …" She unwrapped one of the rice balls and set the nori aside, focusing instead on the rice ball itself. From that, she sculpted two eyes and a mouth, using the umeboshi as a round little red nose. To that, she added thick rectangular nori eyebrows.

Souji peered intently at her work, still silent. But after a moment, he unpeeled the second rice ball and began tearing up the nori as well. Doujima's dinner quickly grew hair and a mustache. Once they were done, Nanako grinned. "There," she said. "That's a good punishment."

Souji didn't laugh. He barely made any noise at all, save the quiet rustle of tatami as he moved back to his seat at the table. But Nanako caught him with a small, secret smile on his face, and that was good enough.

*

"So you got stuck, huh? That's kinda realistic for a dream."

Nanako fought the urge to stamp the ground with one foot. She didn't need any more people staring at her, not with what she was planning to do next. "It wasn't a dream! I know it wasn't! I'll prove it!" And before either Chie or Yousuke could protest, she grabbed both of them by the shoulders and forced them to stick their heads in. There was a terrible dizzying moment, as all three of them clung to a thin windowsill opening out to a great vasty nothingness.

"Holy — "

"How did you—!?"

"I told you — "

In retrospect, Nanako realized, she shouldn't have leaned quite so far in. Because it really was quite a long way to the bottom, especially with Chie and Yousuke landing in a heap on top of her.

*

"Why should we trust you, huh?" said Yousuke, hands crossed over his chest. "You're practically putting a gun to our heads!"

Teddie assumed a fighting stance, holding his paws up in front of his face. "Grrrr! You're really making me angry!"

Before either Chie or Yousuke could argue with the bear further, Nanako rushed in and grasped one paw with both hands. "Of course we'll promise!" she said. "You're too cute not to trust."

"Cute?" said Yousuke, incredulous.

"_Cute?_" echoed Teddie, his eyes filling with tears. "Nanako-chan…"

Nanako nodded. "Of course," she said, smiling brightly. "Don't listen to them, okay?" Her smile sharpened. "They're being very, _very_ stupid."

"Why do I get the feeling we've been overruled…?" said Chie.

Yousuke just groaned and shook his head. "_Girls._"

*  
"Oooooh, what's this?" purred Yukiko's Shadow. "Three princes are here to see me? My my."

Chie started. "Three princes…? Wait, does that include me and…?"

Yukiko's shadow glided forward. The atmosphere, already thick from tension and the smoky heat emitted by the castle itself, seemed even heavier here, especially as the Shadow traced satin-gloved fingers up Nanako's neck. She smelled like cinnamon and incense, thick and rich and dark. "Chie's a strong Prince, but not strong enough," said the Shadow, hooking her fingers under Nanako's chin and tilting her face up. "I like this one better."

*

After another late afternoon spent training in the TV world, Nanako returned home to find Souji alone at the living room table. This time, he picked at his homework with a worried expression, barely even glancing up when Nanako walked in. "I'm home," she said, as cheerfully as she could. "Oh! Is that homework?"

Souji nodded. He bit his lip, staring woefully at the paper in front of him. Math homework, from what she could see.

"Do you want some help…?" she asked, kneeling next to him. A quick look of gratitude from him was all the response she needed. "Okay, here. Addition and subtraction are really easy. For example…" She really wished she had pockets; having some coins to work with would have been nice. "There's three of us in the family now, right? With me, anyway." She counted on her fingers. "You and Uncle make two. And plus one — " she pointed to herself, "— makes three."

Souji hesitated. Then he stared steadily at the empty place where, as usual, Doujima failed to be present.

"You mean Uncle," said Nanako. "Well, he can still count. Even when he isn't here."

Once again, Souji hesitated. Then he held up four fingers instead, looking at a different spot at the table.

"Huh?" said Nanako, feeling a bit stupid. "Who else isn't … oh," she said, softly. "Your mother."

Souji nodded slightly. He stared at his fingers for a long moment, then folded down one of them, so that only three remained. Then another. He hovered over the penultimate one, flashing her an uncertain look.

"I'm right here," said Nanako, firmly. She reached out to Souji's hand and uncurled one of the fingers. "And Uncle's here too, even when he isn't. Because he _should_ be here."

Before she could say anything else, Souji suddenly leaned into her, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist. She resolved right then that she would talk to Doujima about Souji ASAP, even if it meant weeks of practicing how to bring up the subject tactfully.

*  
"You know, you're a bad parent."

Doujima looked up, his mouth hanging slightly open. "What?"

Nanako sat across from him at the table, her dark brown eyes boring into his. It had taken weeks to corner Doujima properly, and she wasn't about to let him get away now. "You're a bad parent," she said. "Why aren't you ever home?"

"Is that what this is about?" Doujima's mouth closed, becoming a firm, stubborn line. "Look, I can't expect you to understand. But my job keeps me very busy."

"I know that," said Nanako. She clenched her hands against her knees, fingers bunching along the edge of her skirt. "I'm not saying _that's_ bad. But I barely see you talk to Souji, even when you are home."

Doujima sighed. "There's more to parenting than talking," he said. "I have to take care of something."

"What?" demanded Nanako. "What's more important than your family?"

Before the argument could progress any further, Souji suddenly appeared between them. He held a picture book, and his eyes darted between Doujima and Nanako, obviously nervous. "Souji?" Doujima paused, surprised, then saw the book in Souji's hands. "… I'll read to you some other night," he said. "Go on up to bed."

Souji hugged the book tighter to his chest.

"Go on," said Doujima again, his face softening. "We're not fighting, all right?"

Finally, Souji nodded. He shot the two of them one last worried glance before padding into his room just as silently as he had come.

"… like that," said Nanako. "Why can't you even read to him?"

Somehow, Doujima managed to look even more tired. "Don't you have to study for a test this week?"

"Last week."

Doujima scowled. "Then you can go to bed early. We're done talking."

"But—"

"I said we're _done._" And with that, he gathered up his files in one swoop, storming out of the kitchen and back towards his bedroom.

In his haste, however, he'd forgotten one newspaper clipping. Nanako bent to retrieve it. _Hit-and-run accident kills mother,_ it read. _The child accompanying her was uninjured, but mentally damaged._ And a picture as well: Doujima and Souji dressed in black, standing in front of the family gravestone.

Nanako slipped the clipping into her pocket. _Next time, I'll ask him for sure_, she thought. _Next time._

*

All of their glasses were cute, especially the novelty ones Teddie had made for Yukiko. But Nanako knew Teddie liked her the best — why else would _her_ glasses have a row of cute pink hearts?

*

"Risette's coming to town? _Really?_"

"Whoa, leader," said Yousuke, laughing. "Save some excitement for the rest of us."

Nanako settled back into her chair. Even in her light pink tank top, she still felt ungodly hot in the summer heat. "I'm allowed," she said, allowing herself a tiny pout. "It's _Risette_."

Before the gang could settle into their usual pre-TV planning, however, Nanako blinked suddenly and stood up. Souji sat alone at one of the Junes picnic tables, staring down at his feet. "Hang on guys …"

"Oh. Is that your cousin?" said Yukiko.

Kanji rubbed at his head. "Cute little fella."

Meanwhile, Nanako leaned over her tiny cousin, hands on her knees. "Souji?" she said. "How'd you get here?"

The boy looked around. Eventually, he pointed towards a mother and her son, about the same age as Souji; Nanako had seen the two of them playing together the previous week.

"Why aren't you playing with him, then?" said Nanako, not unkindly.

Souji glanced over at the table she'd come from. It took her a moment to realize that the expression on his face was a jealous one. Well, as jealous as tiny seven-year-olds got, anyway. "You wanna sit with us?" she said, a bit perplexed.

"Aww," said Chie. "C'mon, bring the little guy over. We won't bite."

"Except Kanji," said Yousuke.

"Huh? Why would I wanna bite 'im?"

Yukiko shuddered. Then she giggled a little, followed by a full-on laughing fit. "Kanji … biting someone … "

Meanwhile, Nanako led her tiny cousin back to the table by one hand. He smiled shyly at the rest of the group, before plunking himself in a chair of his very own. "There," she said, giving him her brightest smile. He returned it with one of his own — much shyer, but still genuinely pleased. "Okay, where were we?"

"S-should we?" said Yukiko, only just now catching her breath. "In front of him, I mean?"

Souji gave her a pleading look, which was wholly unnecessary. "I think he'll be okay," she said. "He's a tough little guy."

*

From that point on, Souji almost always shadowed Nanako whenever she made a trip to Junes. He never came with them to the electronics section, of course, but he would sit in on their pre-training meetings, and sit outside with the spare member until Nanako had finished for the day. He spoke about as much as usual — which was not at all, much to her friends' surprise. But he would listen intently to their conversations, almost as if he were trying to work out the mystery ahead of them. After the first couple weeks, he even started bringing a tiny sketchbook with him, in which he would draw and scrawl notes with alarming accuracy.

"What'd you draw today?" she asked after one such trip.

Souji proudly held up his sketchbook for her perusal. He'd drawn black blobs of various shapes and sizes, each with malevolent-looking eyes and tiny stick arms poking out at strange angles. And above them, one word: "Shadow."

"— Shadow? You understood all that?"

Souji nodded, flipping to several more pages in his book. The visuals were inaccurate, but Nanako could still clearly identify several very key drawings. Such as stick figures of the group, with each of them summoning a monster out of their heads. Or Yukiko in a princess outfit. And even one very awkward-looking talking teddie bear…

_Oh no_, thought Nanako. "Souji, you can't show these to Uncle Doujima," she said, quickly becoming alarmed. "Do you understand?"

Souji's face fell. But he nodded slowly, clutching the sketchbook to his chest.

"… don't make that face," said Nanako. "You can still come. As long—" she added quickly, before Souji could get too excited, "—as you don't tell anyone about this. Okay?"

The boy nodded. And then he did something quite different: he started to hum. Off-key, and almost tuneless, but it was still the first sound she'd ever heard him make.

"Is that the Junes song?" said Nanako, reaching out for his hand again.

Souji nodded again.

She grinned. "Cheater! You know that's my favorite." And she launched into her own, slightly more on-key rendition of the tune, with Souji's humming as backup.

*

"Urgh. It's so hot out! I'm taking this off."

"Wait, you're not talking about your head, are you!?" Yousuke glanced nervously at Souji, who'd spent the entire meeting staring very intently at their mascot friend. "Cut it out! There's kids watching!"

"Actually," said Teddie, dancing a little in place, "I'm no longer a hollow bear! Mwahaha!"

Before anyone could stop him, Teddie lifted the top off his "costume." The glisten of sweat — the sparkle of blond hair in the sunlight — and Nanako found herself staring at a very human-looking Teddie. "Ahh~ Much better!" he said, taking a long drink of Nanako's soda. "Now I can really score!"

The group stared. "T-teddie…?" Chie stammered. "Is that really…?"

Teddie flashed all of them a grin — in more ways than one. He was very very naked under that costume now, a fact almost as distracting as all the sparkles. But before he could respond, he suddenly leaned backwards, as if suddenly unbalanced. "Whoa! B-be gentle back there!"

Souji popped his head up next to Teddie's, apparently unconcerned by the fact that he'd just crawled into a costume with a rather sweaty human. "— whoa, whoa!" said Yousuke. "D-don't get in there! You don't know where it's been!"

Souji responded by sinking lower into the costume, so that only his gray hair poked out over the top. "Oh, Souji," said Nanako, helping him climb out. "You can climb in later, promise. But not while he's naked, okay?"

"I wouldn't mind if one of the girls~ climbed in—"

"_No_."

*

As the days grew cooler, Nanako spent more and more time at Junes. Not because she needed the training — none of them did, not with all the leveling they'd been doing — but because Souji absolutely loved their group, and vice versa. Even when they left him to go to the electronics section, he would happily sit with whoever had been left behind that day, either silently listening or bringing out his sketchbook. And he was _always_ fascinated by Teddie, especially if the latter had decided to wear his costume that day. (Which meant that Teddie ended up rather under-leveled, compared to the others, but that was just a sacrifice Nanako would have to make.)

They came home after one such trip, with dinner on their arms and the usual rendition of the Junes theme on their lips. "We're home," she said, though she knew the house would be empty. Doujima always worked late on Monday nights.

Which made it all the more startling when he rose from his usual seat at the living room, his expression dark and worried. "Where _were_ you?"

She stiffened; Souji clasped her hand tightly and immediately closed his sketchbook, holding it behind his back. "O-oh," she said. "Just Junes. And Souji really likes coming along, so…"

"This late?" Doujima pointed at the clock; it was nearly seven already. "What do you even do there?"

Souji hung his head. "Does it matter?" Nanako said, fighting back a sudden rush of anger. "You're never here when we get back! It's not fair!"

"It's not about what's fair," said Doujima. "It's about what's _safe_. I don't want you two staying out this late."

"At least I spend time with him."

"I've told you, my job — "

"It's not just your job!"

Doujima started. "What did you just say?"

Nanako brandished the newspaper clipping. "It's this, isn't it?" she said. She knew she was on shaky ground here, especially when she'd just barely escaped questioning herself, but she just couldn't help it. "Aunt Naomi died in a hit-and-run. And Souji…"

Souji had drawn in on himself again, looking absolutely miserable. "We're not fighting," said Doujima, before Nanako could continue. His fingers twitched for a nonexistent cigarette. "If you want to talk about this," he said, with a glance that clearly added _and you'd better _really_ want to talk about this_, "I'll be outside." And with that, he stormed out onto the back porch, slamming the door in his wake.

Nanako tightened her grip on Souji's hand. "I'm sorry," she said in as soothing a tone as she could manage. "We're not fighting, I promise. I just have to talk to him."

The boy nodded dumbly and detached. Once he had returned to his room, Nanako reluctantly crossed the living room to the back porch. As promised, Doujima sat on the edge of the porch, cigarette smoke clinging close to his body. "I want to know where you got that clipping from," he said, not looking up at her.

"… you dropped it," she said. It was a clear night; she could see a few faint stars in the early evening darkness. "Weeks ago. I-I honestly wanted to return it earlier, but…"

Doujima tapped his cigarette against the side of the porch. "But you didn't."

"I didn't mean to!" said Nanako, trying not to get angry again. "I meant to ask you about it, but…"

"You've been spending all your time at Junes. For god knows what ridiculous reason." Doujima sighed.

Nanako remained silent. She really, really didn't want to get into that just yet. Fortunately, Doujima spoke up again. "They were walking home from preschool together," he said. His voice seemed half soft, half vulnerable — and all exhausted. "I was busy with work, so she would always go to pick him up. Then…"

"… then she was hit by someone," said Nanako. She slowly lowered herself to the porch, until she sat next to him, her feet barely touching the grass beneath them. "And … and he was there, right?"

Doujima nodded. "He used to talk constantly," he said, with a dry, humorless chuckle. "To me, to anybody who would listen. The emergency workers said he'd been yelling for help the whole time, that by the time they got to him, his voice was gone." He exhaled. "He hasn't spoken since."

_Mentally damaged_, the article had said. But he was still quite smart, if his notes were any indication. And he could hum just fine. Without really thinking about it, Nanako lifted her hand. _Four people,_ she thought. _One gone. And without me…_ She folded three of them down, until only her pinky remained. "He's lonely," she said, very quietly. "He wants a family. He wants _you._"

Doujima's face hardened. "He'll forgive me when he grows up," he said. The cigarette had burned down to a stub; he extinguished it against the porch and rose, slinging his jacket over one shoulder. "I can't lose him right now."

Nanako remained on the porch for a long time.

*  
"Kanji-kun shouldn't worry so much about what people think," said Nanako, sitting next to him under the pavilion. From up here, she had a wonderful view of Inaba — and of Kanji, incidentally, who had turned a rather interesting shade of red. "Besides," she said, "I think it's cute."

Kanji sat up. "C-cute? … really?"

She nodded, giving him a big smile. "Of course! You saw how much Souji liked his doll, right?"

"… yeah."

"I'm jealous, really," continued Nanako brightly. "I wish I could make things like that."

Kanji rubbed at the back of his head, his blush deepening. "Uh, if y'wanted, I could … uh … "

"Hmm?"

"Icouldteachyoumaybe."

"Really? You mean it?"

Kanji had the honor of being the first of the boys allowed into Nanako's room; he definitely would not be the last.

*

It happened during one of their many planning sessions. Between dungeons and between leads, the group had grown frustrated; even Souji's usually blank expression had been replaced by a solemn frown. And then Adachi had meandered by, dropped a bit of pertinent information, gotten the group fired up again — but Souji's frown only deepened. By the time they were ready to go home, he seemed almost scared. Not even an offer to climb in Teddie's suit or a cuddle with the fox had been able to break his mood.

He remained silent all the way home. Nanako opened the door for the both of them — only to be greeted by warmth, light, and noisy conversation. "Uncle?" she said. "Who's here?"

"— oh, hey!" Adachi gave a little wave. "Fancy seeing you again."

"S'too quiet in here," said Doujima, his face bright red from intoxication. "So I says, 'Adachi, you gotta come back tonight. S'too quiet.'"

Adachi laughed nervously. "He's very persuasive. And I couldn't let him walk home like this, so…"

"Adachi."

Nanako whirled. She could have sworn she'd heard — but he couldn't have —

"_Adachi_," repeated Souji. He gripped her hand tightly. "Adachi, Adachi…"

For a split second, Nanako thought she saw the detective's face contort. And then he was all smiles again, reaching out to tap Doujima on the knee. "Whoa!" said Adachi. "Did you hear that?"

"Wha?"

"He said my name! I feel like I should have a video camera, or something…"

Nanako wished she could be as happy as Adachi was about this. Hell, she wished _Souji_ was happier about it. Her cousin trembled like a leaf, seemingly torn between fear and staring at the detective, as if the man would escape the moment Souji looked away. "… c'mon, Souji," she said, kneeling next to him. "It's okay. He's Uncle's friend. You don't have to be scared."

But Souji only shook his head. _Adachi, Adachi — _the most she'd heard out of him yet, and it was the only word he seemed to know. For the next couple weeks, he remained more withdrawn than usual, especially once the detective started coming to see the group whenever he happened to be at Junes. (The boy very quickly made a point of not coming with them on Tuesdays.) Every now and then, he would attempt to write something out, or show her a sketch he'd made, but Nanako simply couldn't make any sense of it. Not when she had midterms and the case and half a million social links to take care of. (Ai, the rival team manager, was definitely the most demanding; trying to catch the attention of Kou was also less than simple.)

On one particular Tuesday, she returned home to find Souji watching the news. "Hey little bro," she said, sitting next to him. "Do you wanna turn to the weather after this?"

Souji nodded. He rested his elbows against one of the floor pillows, legs tilting slowly back and forth in midair.

"— in other news, we visited a local grade school this week," the reporter said. "We took the liberty of collecting a few of their comments in response to a police survey conducted last week…"

An image flashed onscreen; Nanako recognized the old, squat building as being Souji's grade school. "That's your school, isn't it?" she said. "Did you get interviewed too?"

Souji stared flatly at her.

"Don't give me that look," said Nanako, sighing. "I meant the survey."

Her cousin cocked his head to one side, thoughtfully. The reporter was reading off several of the comments now—especially one in particular, which the policed had labeled as being particularly thoughtful. At that, he grew agitated, his flat gray eyes completely focused on the TV.

"Oh! That was yours, wasn't it," said Nanako. "Congratulations, little bro."

Souji gave her a small, shy smile. But other than that… if anything, he seemed more agitated than he had been before. She could see him reaching for his sketchbook in another doomed attempt to explain something to her. "Here, let's watch the weather," she said, flipping the channel. "That's better, right?"

Souji didn't reply. He just continued to scrawl in his sketchbook all evening, with only the occasional glance up to see if she was paying attention.

She wasn't.

"I'm going to start bringing a book," said Yousuke, staring up at the entranceway of Naoto's dungeon. Nanako and her team were inside already; they probably wouldn't be out for hours.

"Then bring it," said Kanji. He had laid out a sewing kit and fabric, and was well on his way to making a new dress for Souji's doll."

"I thought she _liked_ me," said Teddie mournfully. "Where did we go wrong? What did we do to deserve such a cruel, neglected fate?"

"_Girls_," said Yousuke, to which they all agreed.

*

"I'm glad Naoto-kun is a girl," said Nanako, still flush with the excitement of figuring out that last clue.

To her surprise, Naoto reddened deeply. "I .. see," she said slowly, eyes drifting away from Nanako's gaze. "Might I ask why?"

"Well," said Nanako, giving the matter some thought, "I like Naoto-kun no matter what. But I'm especially glad you're a girl."

"Because…?"

Nanako considered. "Naoto-kun is every cute girl. And besides," she added, her eyes sparkling with excitement, "this way we can have an all-girl party!"

"An all-girl…"

"Yep! I mean, I could sort of pretend with Kanji-kun, but…"

Naoto sighed deeply, but her blush did not subside. "I see," she said. "Very well, sempai."

*

Ever since the night Adachi came back to Doujima's home, Souji had refused to open the door to him, no matter how much Nanako insisted on Adachi's harmlessness. But he didn't think to shut out the delivery man, not on a Tuesday, when there was no one else home to sign for a package, or hear him scream —

*

Nanako could have kicked herself. Could have done worse, if not for the fact that her little bro _needed_ her right now. Every tiny delay sharpened the guilt digging into her heart, until she could barely sleep at night. Meanwhile, the team blazed through Heaven as quickly as physically possible, often patching their wounds with Soma or a very expensive appointment with the fox.

"I still can't hear him," said Rise. "I know it should be getting stronger the higher we go, but …"

"This really doesn't seem like his sort of place, either," said Chie. Though she tried to keep her voice light, her expression was darkwith worry. "I-I mean, rainbows and clouds…? If I didn't know better, I'd say we were looking for you, Nanako."

Nanako forced herself to smile. "We can ask him when we get there," she said, firmly. "When we rescue him. _When_ he gets back safely…"

And then she'd show Namatame exactly how Heaven couldn't match the fury of a Nanako unjustly wronged.

*

The rest had been a whirlwind of agonized worry — the fight, Souji's hospitalization, and all the rest. They took it in turns to hover over him, with Nanako taking the lion's share, of course. To her mild surprise, Doujima would join them as well, whenever the doctors allowed him to wheel about. Sometimes they would sit across from each other, Nanako holding Souji's left hand and Doujima holding his right. They rarely spoke, but the feeling was there all the same: _your family is here, Souji. We're not letting go._

And then, the night they'd almost lost him. Nanako had had violent urges before — anyone would, given enough frustration — but pure blistering rage was something almost entirely unfamiliar to her. She wanted Namatame _dead._ She wanted him in Souji's place, dying in a hospital bed, rather than free to worm away like the bastard he was. It wasn't _fair._

But somehow, she'd remembered something. A name stuck in her mind, spoken in a voice she'd only heard once: _Adachi._ Not Namatame. Even during his brief moments of lucidity, Souji hadn't had a reaction to that name. _Adachi._ Not Namatame.

When he got better, she'd have to thank him.

*

"He's really all right?" asked Nanako, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand. "A-after he…?"

"Miraculous recoveries do happen," said the doctor. "We'll monitor him, of course, but for now…"

Nanako nodded. Relief flooded through her, and threatened to start a fresh batch of tears — but she didn't care. If her little brother was okay, then she didn't _care_ if she looked like a mess, or broke down in front of everyone. "Can I stay with him?" she said. "A little longer?"

"For a few minutes," said the doctor. "That's all."

With another nod, Nanako slid into her usual chair. "H-hey," she said, her voice wavering. "Don't scare me like that." She tightened her grip on his hand, hardly daring to look at him.

"Big … sis?"

Nanako looked up, startled. Although Souji's eyes still had that glassy, medicated look to them, he managed to give her hand a tiny squeeze. "Big sis is here," she said. "Your dad's here too." A weak laugh. "The doctors had to yell at him for pulling out his stitches. Again."

Souji nodded. "Big sis," he repeated weakly. "Dad. … me. Here?"

"That's right."

Her tiny cousin closed his eyes again, though not before shifting his free hand out from under the hospital bedsheets. He bent his thumb and pointer finger. "Three," he said, as his words blurred into unconsciousness. "Three."

"That's right," said Nanako again, much more quietly. "We're here."

--

A/N: Originally written for the P4 kink meme badbadbathhouse / LJ. Thank you to all the supporters who suggested I post this to . Archival LJ post can be found here.

This is the main fic, which I consider to be complete. All further fics in the series are "microfics," aka add-ons written after completing the original. I like to refer to them as (and counting), to match with 1+1+1. Obviously, reading the main fic is required for comprehension; after that, the microfics that follow can be read in any order. I will probably continue to post microfics as long as people are interested in seeing more material.


	2. adventures in food poisoning

**( adventures in food poisoning)**

Her cousin, Nanako decided, was a rather _odd_ little boy. Eerily quiet, and naturally prone to a strange sort of solitude. As far as she could tell, he only had one friend — a little boy from school, who she'd seen once and then never again. Sometimes, he would sit in the corner of the living room and hold invisible (and inaudible) conversations with the walls. Other times, however, she'd catch him doing something even weirder.

Like today. Her biology teacher had decided it'd be a _great_ idea to make them all grow bean sprouts for a week or two. Half of their class had been instructed to take care of the thing normally; the others were supposed to do more creative things, like deny it light, or water, or grow it in a plastic bottle, and then record the results. It was all very grade school. Personally, Nanako had just shoved the silly thing into the back of the refrigerator and forgotten about it. Lack of light _and_ lack of heat! Perfect.

Until she came home to find Souji seated at the living room table, munching on something enthusiastically. "Hey there," she said, kicking off her shoes. The floor squeaked underneath her socked feet. "Couldn't wait for dinner, huh?"

Souji jerked a little, vaguely guilty. She had just enough time to notice the pale white bean sprout hanging out of Souji's mouth before he sucked the rest of it in. "_Souji!_" she said, appalled. "You can't — that's not food!"

The crunching noises coming from Souji's mouth said otherwise. He swallowed the rest of the plant, then poked at the little soil tray plaintively. As if searching for seconds.

Nanako sighed. Well, there went her biology project. What was she supposed to tell her teacher now? 'My little cousin ate my homework?' "Honestly," she said, "wasn't there anything else you could have eaten?"

The boy looked towards the kitchen significantly. As Nanako turned, she could see that the refrigerator door was wide open — and that the fridge itself was absolutely empty. "… oh," she said, with a sudden pang of guilt. "I guess it has been a week since we've really gone shopping…"

The boy nodded.

"… but you still can't eat that kind of stuff," she puffed. "If you're going to steal my stuff, you can at least eat something good."

Souji looked thoughtful. Or rather, she thought he looked thoughtful … until he started looking a bit green around the gills.

"Oh no," groaned Nanako. "You're going to be sick, aren't you. Can you get up?"

He shook his head.

"Lie down," she said, getting to her feet. "I'll get you a bucket."

All and all, it was a pretty miserable night. But it didn't come without benefits, at least for Nanako; she certainly felt a _lot_ less scared of throwing up, for example. Because nothing could be worse than having to do it while you were seven, with no one but your strange city-slicker cousin for company.

And besides, it made her want to cook again. If her cousin would eat her homework, then surely he could be persuaded to try a little curry …

* * *

  
"It's not thickening right."

"S-sure it is! … it's supposed to be gritty, right Nanako…?"

"It wasn't gritty when I made it for Souji …"

The three girls hovered above their camp cooking pot. It had been scorchingly hot earlier that day, but by now it had cooled considerably, and the smoke of a dozen cooking fires made their "camping trip" feel campy at last. … well, with one minor exception. Chie and Yukiko shot each other nervous looks, while Nanako stared firmly at their pot of curry. Maybe if she kept looking at it, it wouldn't boil, and they could just dump the poor misguided mess out onto the ground. "Should we … taste this?" said Yukiko, wincing.

"My cousin would eat it?" said Nanako, trying to sound hopeful. "Then again, he did kind of eat my homework." Pause. "And Uncle's month-old pickles. And that horrible moldy old plum …" She hadn't quite broken him of that habit.

"Well, we can at least say there aren't any moldy plums in it," said Chie. "Or my homework."

Yukiko chewed on a fingernail. "But there _are_ pickles…"

"Are you guys gonna feed me or what?" Yousuke said. He craned his neck, peering at them from his seat on the picnic table.

"We're coming!" said Nanako, then flopped her hands onto her knees with a sigh. "We'd better…" she said, a little quieter. "He'll walk over and find us out in a moment."

"You're right," said Chie. "And hey, maybe it won't be so bad. Maybe … ?"

The three girls nodded. Between them, they made a great heaping pile of curry and brought it over to Yousuke, who looked absolutely ravenous. "Oh man," he said. "Stomach, my friend, you have a date with awesome."

"Thaaaat's right?" said Chie, laughing nervously. "Nanako, tell him I'm right."

"Very right," she said, her face the very picture of solemnity. "Right as rain. Right with extra right on top."

Yousuke paused. For a terrifying moment, Nanako thought he'd figured them out. "Ooookay then," he said. "Chow time!"

He took a bite. The curry squished in his mouth unpleasantly, and Nanako winced. Just listening was bad enough. Before he could even swallow, however, he stood up. He looked like he wanted to sputter, or yell at them, or both; instead, he hit the ground with a soft thunk. "— Yousuke?" said Chie, kneeling next to him. "Oh god, did we—?"

Nanako looked around frantically for a nurse, but saw no one. … well, except Morooka-sensei, but he most certainly didn't count. "Quick!" she said. "Drag him back to his tent! T-the least we can do is give him some privacy!" And maybe if he stayed unconscious long enough, he might forget the whole thing.

"Good thinking!" said Chie. Together, they hauled him up by his arms and legs, with Yukiko acting as both guide and lookout.

Once they got back towards the tents, however, they ran into another problem. "Do we … know where his tent is?" asked Yukiko. "At all?"

"Of course we do," said Nanako, puffing a bit under the weight of Yousuke's legs. "He's … er … in the men's section?"

They hung their heads. Even if Morooka _weren't_ here, they'd get all sorts of unwanted attention by wandering through the boys' side of the camp. Not exactly subtle. "Our tent?" suggested Chie, tentatively. "We can send him back once it gets dark. A-and if he wakes up before then, we just give him another spoonful. R-right…?"

"Right," said Yukiko and Nanako, before hauling ass (quite literally) back to the girls' side of camp.

* * *

  
"… and that's why you're in our tent," said Nanako, holding out the bucket.

"With food-poisoning," added Yukiko.

"With food-poisoning."

Yousuke retched again. Not that there was much left to come up at this point, except maybe a lung. Or Jiraiya. "Okay," he said, gasping for breath. "But that still … doesn't explain _him._"

"Got bored," said Kanji, and popped another animal cracker into his mouth.

* * *

  
By the time she made it home from that failure of a camping trip, Nanako was absolutely starving. "Still nothing…" she said, drooping against the door of the refrigerator. "I really should have bought something before I left."

As she leaned, however, she spotted something. There, in the bottom of the fridge, was a tiny covered bowl. "Thank goodness," she said, pulling it out and peeling away the tupperware lid. Inside was a tiny scoop of pudding, with a positively delicious-looking fringe of blue icing all around the top. A bit sweet for her tastes, but it was _something_. And boy did she need it.

"Thank you for the food~" she said. Add one spoon, and — voila! Instant meal. It was certainly quite sweet, although the texture of the icing didn't quite sit right on her tongue. On that note, how many kinds of pudding had icing, anyway…?

As she scooped out the last bit of icing, she noticed a bit of writing along the inside of the bowl. SO-U- … uh oh. And before she could even put the bowl down, the front door swung open, revealing her little cousin. "Oh … hi Souji," she said, unable to look anything but guilty. "Look, we'll go and get more groceries tonight, I promise—"

Souji stared at her. And then stared some more. He remained expressionless during his entire walk up to her, during the time it took to dig something out of his backpack, and a moment to show her the paper he'd brought home with him. "The Fungus Among Us," she read. "This project is intended to teach young students about the wonders of the invisible world, starting with a culture sample to be grown at home in the refrigerator…"

Her stomach gurgled. Souji left for a moment, only to reappear with their very best friend in the world: the bucket. He held it out, his expression as solemn and reproaching as she'd ever seen it. "Thanks," she said, trying to feel brave. Somehow, she didn't get quite as much courage out of it when she was the one throwing up.


	3. various I

**( silence is yandere )**

During her stay at the Doujima household, Nanako had come to appreciate many different varieties of silence. Like the pleasant, warm silence of Doujima and Nanako sitting on the couch, with Souji wedged comfortably between them. The cold, echoing silence of a completely empty household. And more individual ones as well. Nanako's silences came in stormy fits; Doujima's lingered longer, smoldering with anger and regret.

And then there was THE silence. No other words could do it justice. Nanako came home one day to find it permeating the house like a thick fog, with Souji at its center. "What's...wrong?" asked Nanako, nervously. "Um, little bro...?"

Souji lifted his head. He sat between her and the back window, his tiny frame silhouetted against the light. One gray eye glittered. Without saying a word, he craned his head back and fixed Nanako with a cold, empty stare. "Oh," said Nanako, feeling very small indeed. "Uncle ate your pudding again, didn't he."

An incremental nod.

"I'll ... I-I'll just go back and buy some more, okay?" she said, shimmying back out of the genkan. "Be right back!"

Really, having food poisoning would have been easier.

**( compendium )**

"While we certainly encourage Persona growth, as well as a certain level of customization," started Igor, eying Nanako's newest acquisition, "certain characteristics simply cannot be recorded in the compendium. Such as … well, braided tentacles."

"Even if he likes it?"

"Even if he likes it."

"Skreeee," Mara said, fluttering its ribbon-adorned appendages and drooping with disappointment.

**( brown and blue )**

"A pageant? _Really_?"

Chie groaned. "Don't get excited, Nanako. He seriously doesn't need the encouragement right now." She leveled a murderous glare at Yousuke. "Why the hell did you sign all of us up!?"

"Jeez! Can't you take a joke?" Yousuke held up his hands. "Can't you back out?"

"Not any more, we can't," said Chie. "Didn't you see the deadline?"

"Beauty pageant~"

"See? The leader's happy," said Yousuke. "Why do you always have to be such a bitch?"

"_Bitch_? Why you—" Chie stomped on his foot, _hard._

"Ow, dammit! That's assault!"

"Beauty. Pageant," said Nanako between clenched teeth. It was very difficult to feel excited when her two best friends insisted on bickering.

"Maybe we shouldn't tell him we signed them up for the cross-dressing pageant," said Yukiko, also eying the fight. "I mean, he'll find out later anyway…"

"— cross-dressing pageant?" said Nanako. She glanced up at the wall — and sure enough, there was the sign. Well, too bad. She wouldn't mind that either, really, but she _had_ been looking forward to being pretty… "Oh," she said at last. "Do you think Naoto-kun would help?"

Naoto started. "I beg your pardon?"

"And _that's_ why I signed you up!" yelled Chie, hands on her hips. "C'mon, Nanako," she said, grabbing her leader by the arm. "We're leaving."

* * *

"… and you are quite certain about this?"

Nanako nodded. "Though I'm not stuffing socks anywhere," she added quickly. "Just everything else."

"Very well," said Naoto, before beginning the delicate process of trimming Nanako's hair.

* * *

She made it all the way to the wings of the stage before anyone thought to stop her, and then only because this was the girls' part of the program, and could the young man please take his seat? She argued with the teacher for a full minute before Chie finally came along. "— Leader?!" she said, openly goggling at Nanako. "What did you — how did you —!?"

Nanako lit up. "Chie-chan!" she said, twirling a bit in her boys' uniform. "Doesn't it look great? Naoto-kun really did an awesome job!"

"You cut your _hair!_" said Chie, dismayed. "Not that it looks bad, but — did you really cut all of it off?"

Nanako shook her head. "The rest of it's under the hat," she said. "That was Naoto-kun's idea too."

"Ahaha, that's … that's good," said Chie. "Because, um … you do know that the crossdressing pageant is just for the _boys_, right?"

There was a deadly pause. "What?" yelped Nanako. "You mean, I — I cut my hair, and — and now I can't even go out on stage and show everyone?"

Chie laughed nervously. "Well, you could, but I don't think you want to —"

"I _want_ to!" said Nanako. And before Chie could stop her, she charged straight out onto the stage after Yukiko, boys' uniform and all.

* * *

The Detective Prince, everyone agreed, was still the prettiest. But even the prettiest Prince needed a backup, and Nanako's brown colors matched _so_ well with Naoto's blue.


	4. king's quest

**( king's quest )**

Every now and then, Nanako had to wonder exactly how she got herself into these situations.

Maybe "wonder" wasn't the right word for it. Her teammates were very happy to clarify matters, especially if they ended up getting dragged along for the ride. 'Impulsive' got thrown around a lot. And 'surprisingly naive.' Also, 'slow the hell down before you kill us all.' (That last one was totally unfair. How the hell could they go "too fast" when half her team couldn't even keep up in the first place?)

Still, this one was _entirely_ not her fault. The club had been Rise's suggestion, not hers, as were the drinks -- and she hadn't even tried them yet when people started getting drunk. "Aw, c'moooon," said Rise, clinging to Nanako's arm. "You're 'sposedta be the fun one! Ain't this fun?"

"Yeaaaah," said Yukiko, also latching on. Nanako felt the color rising in her cheeks. Had it been that hot in here a moment ago? "You gotta do the King's Game with us! No fun without our fearless leader."

"Nanako-chan'll do it for good ol' Teddie, right?" He flashed her an especially seductive sparkle. "She's always been BEARY special to me..."

"O-okay, okay!" said Nanako, her ears beginning to turn red. "Just don't tell my Uncle."

Rise nuzzled Nanako's shoulder. "You kidding? This's a secret. 'What happens in Vegas' and stuff."

"Promise?"

"Prooooomise."

Nanako nodded. "Okay then!" she said, her eyes suddenly sparkling with determination. "There'd better be smooches!"

"Smooches!" agreed Yukiko.

Yousuke did a quick mental tally. "Hey, better than 50/50 odds here. I am good with smooching."

"Me too, me too!" said Teddie, jumping to his feet. "Bring on the smooches!"

"Oh god, kill me now," said Chie, and covered her face.

* * *

  
With the first round (as well as Kanji and Teddie, sprawled as they were) out of the way, there were suddenly a lot fewer boys on the playing field. Yousuke's mood had considerably improved; Chie's had not. "So ... Nanako's the King this time," she said, eying her leader's red chopstick. "At least you'll keep the requests ... ... reasonably sane?"

Yukiko giggled. "You don't sound so sure about that~"

Nanako, meanwhile, couldn't help but grin. "She knows me too well," she said. She rolled the chopsticks between her palms, trying to think of something good.

"S'how the game's 'sposed to go!" burbled Rise. "No turning back now!"

"Aww, c'mon Chie," said Yousuke. "All in good fun, right?"

Chie shot him a glare. "_You're_ just happy because it's only _girls_ left."

"Okay!" said Nanako. "I've got it. I want ..."

#1 to rest their head on her knee  
#2 to sit in her lap  
#3 to give her a hug  
#4 to get a piggyback ride

** #1**

"All right," said Nanako, sighing. "I'll keep it sane."

Chie brightened. "I knew I could count on you," she said.

"Boooring," said Rise.

Nanako couldn't help but redden a little. "I-I'm not! Look, just — person number one has to put their head on my knee, okay?"

"— hey, that's me," said Yousuke. "Well, I'm sure not gonna argue with that." He picked his way over to Nanako and settled himself on the opposite side, where there was just enough room for him to sit down. Except he didn't. Instead, he laid himself down against the soft cushions, with his head quite firmly in Nanako's lap. "Hey leader," he said, winking up at her. "You make a pretty good pillow."

For a split second, Nanako stared at him. Then two things happened. First, Nanako leaned back, suddenly feeling self-conscious. Having a boy in her lap was one thing. Having a boy looking up at the undersides of her boobs was another thing. The second thing involved Chie, who jumped instantly to her feet. "Hey!" she said. "That's not what she said!"

"Aww, c'mon!" Yousuke's grin quickly turned into a frown. "My head's on her knee! I'm not doing anything wrong."

"You were staring right at her breasts, you jerk!"

"Was not!"

Another day, another squabble. Nanako fought the urge to strangle the both of them. "Fine, just keep fighting," she grumbled. In the meantime, she'd be busy braiding Yousuke's hair.

** #2**

"Number two! You have to, um … sit on my lap."

"Whoooo's number two?" said Yukiko, continuing to sway. "Who whoooo?"

Chie nudged her in the ribs. "That's _you_, silly," she hissed.

Yukiko squinted down at her chopstick. Then she turned it, squinting at it again. "Ohh. I had it upside-down."

"… upside-down?" asked Yousuke, tentatively.

Yukiko bobbled her head so hard that Nanako instinctively reached out a hand to steady it. "Looked like a seven! Aaaanyway." She got to her feet unsteadily, toddled the entire two feet over to Nanako… then she plunked down.

She was surprisingly heavy for a girl her size; Nanako found herself straining to breath. "O-oof," said Nanako, wincing. "You're kinda on _stomach_…"

Rise tsked. "That's what you get for slouching!"

"Y-yeah, but…"

"Hang on, hang on…" Without waiting for Nanako's response, Yukiko shifted her position. … except, she shimmied _up_ rather than back down towards Nanako's knees. Nanako quickly found herself lying back on the the seat, with Yukiko straddling her torso. "Theeere," said Yukiko. "Much better."

"B-better," said Nanako, laughing nervously. "Right…"

"I am so jealous of you right now," said Yousuke, but Nanako couldn't figure out which one he was talking to. Perhaps he couldn't either.

** #3**

"Hmmm…" said Nanako, looking thoughtful. "I could use a hug."

Rise giggled from her place on Nanko's arm. "From who? C'mon, you gotta pick!"

"Number three?" She eyed her teammates hopefully. "Who's that?"

"—oh!" said Rise, perking up. "That's me! Except," she added, looking down at Nanako's arm, "I'm already doing that."

"So we're already done?" asked Chie. "Great!"

"Nooot yet," said Yukiko. She tapped a finger to her lower lip, thinking. "If y'already did the King's order, then you've gotta up it. Make it more extreeeeme."

"Right!" said Rise. And then she leaned in abruptly, giving Nanako a quick kiss on the lips.

The group stared. One in horror (Chie), One with a mixture of horror and very, very close attention (Yousuke), and one who just plain wasn't paying attention at all (Yukiko). Nanako, meanwhile, went completely red. "I — e-er —"

"There!" said Rise. "Perfect. Who else wants a Risette kiss?"

"This is the best night of my life," said Yousuke, before settling in next to Rise as well.

** #4**

"You know what?" said Nanako, putting her hands on her hips. "I want a piggy-back ride!"

Yousuke paused. "Wait, wasn't the suggestion for _you_ to give someone _else_ a piggy back ride…?"

"Doesn't matter!" said Rise with a wave of her hand. "The King's law…"

"… is absolute!" finished Yukiko.

"Better hope it's someone with good upper arm strength," said Yousuke.

Nanako pouted. "I'm not _that_ heavy," she said. "Who's number four?"

Chie started. "Huh? You mean me?" She laughed nervously. "W-well, I'm strong enough! For a little while, at least."

"You mean it?" said Nanako, her expression brightening. "Really?"

"Sure!" She got to her feet. "I mean, how hard could it be?"

Nanako answered her with a flying tackle. She wrapped both arms around Chie in a tight monkey grip, with her legs dangling off Chie's back. "Giddyap!" she said. "High-ho Chie!"

"Urk —" Chie wobbled. For a short moment, it looked as though she might regain her balance; then both of them toppled over. Chie hit the floor with a breath-stealing thud; Nanako, on the other hand, was a lot less lucky. She smacked her forehead soundly against the table, then hit the floor as well, instantly unconscious.

"Leader!"

"Senpai!"

"The _drinks!_"

Naoto leaned down calmly, pressing his fingers to Nanako's neck. "I will call for medical assistance," he said, and made his way down the stairs.

** ???**

"On second thought," said Nanako, staring ruefully down at her chopstick, "I really can't decide."

"Reallly?" said Rise. "Really really really?"

"If she said it once, then she means it," said Chie, looking quite relieved. "One round was enough, wasn't it?"

Nanako shook her head. "It's not that," she said. "It's just that..."

"... thaaat?" said Yukiko.

"That they're all really good choices!" Nanako gave the group her biggest, brightest, and definitely cutest smile. "So let's do all of them!"

Chie's mouth dropped open. "W-what? Now? All at once?"

"Yep~!"

"But -- but -- "

"Dibs on the lap!" said Yousuke, before they all piled on Nanako in a messy (but quite fun ) heap.

** #5**

Silently, Nanako counted off the number of people in the room. "All right then," she said. "#5 owes me a kiss too!"

"Five?" said Yukiko, scrunching her brow in confusion. "I mean, m'definitely seeing two of Rise, but I don't think y'can specify which one..."

"That's because there _aren't_ five left," said Chie. "Not with Kanji and Teddie being all over the floor."

"mmnghhMMPH"

"Like I said!"

Nanako frowned. "But there _is_ one more person," she said. "Didn't you get one too, Naoto-kun?"

The girls jumped a bit. They'd all sort of forgotten about the detective; an easy mistake, considering how quiet the boy had been. "Naturally," he said, his expression cool. "But not due to any interest in participating."

"What?" said Rise with a wide, drunken swivel of her head. "No fair! Rules're rules!" She detached from Nanako long enough to put her hands on her hips. "If you took a chopstick, then you're _playing_, mister."

Naoto sighed. "Must I?"

The girls nodded. Especially Nanako, whose cheeks felt very pink indeed.

"Then I suppose I have little choice." The detective prince leaned forward, angling Nanako's face with his fingers. Slender, beautifully smooth fingers, Nanako noticed.

And then he kissed her. He kept it brief, his lips just barely brushing against hers, but that didn't stop Nanako's heart from fluttering. She sank back into the booth seat with a deep sigh. "I think the Prince just topped the King there," said Yousuke. "Man, how do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Rouuuuund three!" said Rise, helping herself to another drink. Not that Nanako cared -- for her, the game was already won and over, thank you very much.


	5. fortune

**( fortune )**

"I apologize for involving you in this."

The two of them sat underneath the park pavilion. With the onset of fall, Nanako had taken to wearing a pink hoodie over her uniform, something for which she now felt acutely grateful. In other words, it was chilly out. But it wasn't just the chill that brought a flush of pink to her cheeks. "Are you kidding?" she said. "This is an adventure!"

Naoto chuckled. "I suppose I should not underestimate your enthusiasm," she said. "In any case," she continued, her face deepening into a frown, "there is still the matter of the first…"

They both started, Nanako moreso than Naoto. The card had disappeared. "Huh?" said Nanako, looking around frantically. "Wait, did the wind get it?"

"… no," said Naoto, her expression more amused than worried. "I would not say that."

Nanako turned back to the table just in time to see Souji stick the first card in his mouth. "H-hey, little bro! When did you get here?" And then a second pause, followed by Nanako reaching awkwardly for his would-be snack. "Don't eat that!"

Souji nibbled delicately, with the air of a connoisseur sipping fine wine. After a moment, however, his expression clouded; the card popped out and received a disappointed stare. Naoto chuckled again. "I believe he smells the citrus on it. He has a sharp nose for details."

_And a tendency to sneak up on me,_ thought Nanako with a sigh. "I didn't notice that…"

Naoto waved off her embarrassment. "It was quite faint."

Meanwhile, her little cousin wasn't finished with the card just yet. He turned it over in his hands, sniffed it again, even shook it a few times. Finally, he held it up to the light — and then became terribly excited. He bounced between the two girls, as if unsure which of them to give it to. "What is it?" said Nanako, trying not to laugh. "Did you figure something out?"

"That does seem to be the case…" Naoto took the card from Souji. Like him, she held it up against the sun … and then abruptly got to her feet. "Senpai," she said, whirling on Nanako. "I require the use of your stove. Immediately."

"Sure, but — "

"I will explain on the way." And with that, she took Nanako by the wrist. Souji latched onto the other one, and together they ran home as quickly as they were able.

After all, a mystery was afoot.

* * *

It was all the love letter's fault.

Well, perhaps not entirely. After all, this wasn't the _first_ time Nanako had had such feelings. The King's Game had been … special, and Naoto's dungeon quite surprising as well — not to mention the warm stomachache that had persisted all through the hot springs episode. But the love letter dredged up something else entirely.

"There is no need for worry," said Naoto, tucking the tiny envelope into her jacket. "I have no time for such frivolities."

Nanako laughed nervously. "I-I wasn't worried!" she said. That part was true; it hadn't been worry. Jealousy, more like. And annoyance, because _why_ couldn't she have thought of that first—? "C'mon, let's talk about the case more. Okay?"

"Very well."

* * *

— and as the evenings they spent together grew longer, there were weeks when Nanako didn't even want to fight Shadows, if it meant squeezing in a few more hours playing detective with Naoto-kun —

* * *

One of the group's first (and few) fights had been a simple one: Nanako refused to allow her teammates to shield her in battle. In fact, she'd happily shove _them_ out of the way, even if meant getting knocked unconscious and losing all the progress they'd made. They lost nearly a week's experience that way before they all decided (_without_ their leader's approval, the bastards) that Nanako was NOT allowed to protect people during a TV World fight. Ever.

Fortunately, this was not the TV World, and therefore Nanako was _entirely justified_ in knocking Naoto out of the way. "You can't hurt Naoto!" she said, brandishing her fists. "I won't let you!"

"Senpai, it's not —"

The attacker suddenly dropped the knife and fled, apparently terrified by Nanako' s menacing demeanor. Well! That was one way to solve a fight, and one that Nanako approved of. "Don't yell at me!" she said, hands on her hips. "He had a _knife_!"

Two spots of color appeared in Naoto's cheeks. "It is only shaped like a knife," she said, her voice trembling with barely-suppressed anger. "But if it had been a real one —"

"I don't care!"

"You should, senpai. You're our leader."

Nanako scowled. "What kind of leader lets her team get hurt?" she said. "He really could've stabbed you!"

Suddenly, Naoto grabbed her hat. It only remained off for a few seconds, as Naoto made a supremely frustrated noise. Then she stuck it back on roughly, where it remained slightly askew. "He could have done the same to _you_ if that were the case!" she said, her voice rising in both pitch and intensity. "Why can't you understand that?"

"I understand, dammit!" Nanako very much wanted to hit something right now. It was either that or burst into angry, messy tears. "I just — I just —

"Yes?"

"I just _like_ you, okay?"

Nanako slapped a hand over her own mouth, blushing furiously. Too little, too late; the words were already out. Naoto gaped at her silently, all the color draining from her cheeks. "You mean…?"

Nanako considered denying it. If she did that now, she could still get away with remaining friends, most likely. But instead she nodded. "I-I like you," she repeated, turning her face away. "A lot."

Now it was Naoto's turn to go red. They stayed like that for a long moment, with only the swishing autumn breeze for background noise. In the end, however, Naoto backed down first. "I— w-well, that's — " She stumbled back through the leaves and out of the shrine.

Nanako sank to the ground with a soft sigh. _Stupid_, she thought miserably. Now she wanted to cry again, but for entirely different reasons. She bunched her fingers against the ground. How was she supposed to face Naoto after this? Even if the detective did return to the investigation team, there'd be no way Nanako could look her in the eye anymore—

* * *

Their mutual silence persisted for an entire week, much to the consternation of the rest of the team. Kanji offered sewing lessons; Teddie, cuddles. Chie insisted on getting in more live kung fu lessons (to Yousuke's dismayed and possibly forced agreement) while Yukiko and Rise both tried asking her out to the movies. Even Souji realized something was up, and tried to help in his own way. (Multiple choice pictures, while cute and _disturbingly accurate_, did not help Nanako decide what to do.)

Finally, Nanako agreed to an outing with the "girls" of the party — minus Naoto, of course. They all gathered at Junes, just a few tables down from their "secret hideout." Not that Nanako seemed to notice. She nursed her soda quietly while her teammates exchanged worried looks. "H-hey, so…" started Chie, "we've been thinking."

Nanako didn't look up. Much better to continue rattling the ice in her cup, just in case there was a tiny pocket of soda still left down there.

"Right, um…" Yukiko's turn to look awkward. "We think you've been really down lately," she said. "You're not sick, are you?"

"Huh? N-no," said Nanako, forcing herself to smile. "It's just been a hard week, you know? Tests and … and things …"

"Weeeee really don't think it's tests," said Rise. "No offense, but I wouldn't be worried if it were that."

Chie nodded. "Right! Who needs good grades, anyway?"

"Exactly!"

Yukiko sighed. "Grades are important too, you know…" She paused before continuing. "Are you having boy trouble?"

Nanako choked. Suddenly, she wished she'd brought a bigger cup. Anything to hide her face. "W-why do you say that?"

The three girls exchanged a knowing look. "Kinda hard not to notice, leader," said Chie. "You've been mooning over him all week."

"Is it someone we know?" said Rise, leaning on the table. "We're here for you, y'know."

"That's right!" said Chie, beaming. "And I'll kick his ass if he's giving you trouble! _Especially_ if it's Yousuke."

"I-It's not..." Nanako chewed on her lower lip. "It's not a boy."

Yukiko's brow scrunched with worry. "Is it something more serious?" she asked. "Your family...?"

Nanako laughed nervously. "No, no," she said, putting her cup back on the table. "They're all right too."

"Then what is it?"

No turning back now. At least this time she had a moment to consider things, to let it roll around in her head a little before it came out. "Actually," she said, "it's..."

"Senpai."

Nanako froze. She knew that voice. Slowly, she turned in her seat and found herself in the unusual position of looking up at Naoto. "H-hey, um." That stupid heart of hers really needed to stop fluttering. "About last week..."

Naoto looked away; Nanako thought she saw the faintest hint of pink in the detective's face. "Ah. We willl discuss that. But for the moment, I have something more pressing I wish to discuss with you. If you could meet me by the river?"

"Oh! Sure." Standing, Nanako gave the rest of her friends an apologetic look. "I'll be right back, promise," she said, before hurrying after Naoto.

The three remaining girls exchanged one last set of looks. "Why do I feel like we just got ditched...?" said Chie.

"We _did_," said Yukiko, eyes widening. "I really think we did."

"So you think...?"

"Totally," said Rise.

Chie made a frustrated noise. "Dammit! I can't beat up Naoto -kun for _that_," she said. "But I don't wanna just sit here either."

"Operation Date Watch?" said Rise, perfectly innocent.

"Operation Date Watch," agreed Yukiko.

"As long as _I_ don't end up on the bottom this time."

* * *

Nanako should have felt relieved, or maybe exalted. Finding out that Naoto's butler had, in fact, done it, was something of an "I told you so" moment. (Though she couldn't take full credit for that one either. Her little bro was either so smart or so psychic that it scared her sometimes. Now, if only she could get him to work on the murder case...)

Even so, all she could feel was nervous. All through the exposition, even through the discussion of awesome detective gadgets (though that had almost been distracting enough), and up to their return to the pavillion bench. "... I apologize," said Naoto, quietly. Once again, the detective refused to meet Nanako's gaze. "It has taken me far too long to consider the options."

Nanako nodded dumbly. "It's okay," she said.

Naoto remained silent.

"I-I mean -- I really don't feel any different," she added, "but I at least want to talk to Naoto-kun again. And go on detective adventures again." She knotted the folds of her skirt with her fingers. "Please?"

"I ... would like that, yes," said Naoto. Her words came out awkward and strange, not at all like the detective Nanako knew. "I would also like to say something."

"Yeah?"

Naoto's cheeks flushed. "I feel something for you as well," she said, turning her head back towards Nanako. "I'm still very much unsure of how to proceed, but--"

Before Naoto could say another word, Nanako threw her arms around the other girl and squeezed. (Perhaps a bit too tightly; she could hear Naoto wheezing for air.) "That's plenty," she said, burying her face in Naoto's shoulder. "I'm glad."

* * *

"I have something I want to give you."

They were both in Nanako's room now, with Nanako seated on the couch while Naoto stood in front of her, holding a small package. "Really?" said Nanako, reaching out to take it. "Can I open it now?"

"Naturally."

Nanako unfoled the handkerchief. Inside was a small, finely-crafted detective's badge, embossed with metallic leaf (slightly cracked, but still good) and studded with a line of tiny LEDs. "It's really nothing much," said Naoto, faintly embarrassed. "If I had had time to return to the estate--"

"It _flashes!_"

"-- I could have added --"

"Does it beep too? Can I wear it?"

Naoto found herself looking straight into the heart of giddy delight. "Ah," she faltered. "That was the intent. If you do not mind continuing to be my assistant...?"

Nanako hugged the tiny thing to her chest. "Of course!" she said, bubbling with excitement. "It'll be an adventure, won't it?"

"... yes," said Naoto quietly, sitting down next to her. "An adventure."

They passed a long time together.


End file.
